Create and edit vector objects

Create and edit vector objects

With Fireworks, you can create and edit two kinds of graphics:

vector objects and bitmap images. A vector object is a mathematical description of a geometric form. Vector paths are defined by points. Vector paths do not show a degradation in quality when you zoom in on them or scale them larger or smaller. The leaf in the illustration below is a collection of vector objects. Notice how smooth the leaf ’s edges appear even when you zoom in.

In contrast, a bitmap image is made up of a grid of colored pixels. Images with complex color variations, such as photographs, are most often bitmap images.

While many applications offer tools to edit either vector shapes or bitmap images, Fireworks lets you work with both types of graphics. You will work with vector graphics in this section.

Create vector objects

Now you’ll create two of the graphical elements for your document. First you’ll create a blue rectangle that will be positioned at the bottom of the document. Then you will create a rectangle that will act as a border for the contents of the canvas.

1 Choose the Rectangle tool in the Vector section of the Tools panel.

2 In the Property inspector, click the Fill Color box. The Fill Color pop-up window opens.

3 Type 333366 in the text box at the top of the window, then press Enter. The Fill Color box changes to a dark blue color to reflect your color choice.

4 In the Property inspector, click the Stroke Color box. The Stroke pop-up window opens.

5 In the Stroke Color pop-up window, click the Transparent button.

6 In the Document window, position the cross-hair pointer over the canvas, and drag downward and to the right to create a rectangle. You can draw the rectangle anywhere on the canvas. You’ll resize and position it later in this procedure.

7 When you release the mouse button, a dark blue rectangle appears, selected, in the area you defined. You can tell when an object is selected because it displays blue corner points. Most objects also have a blue highlight around their outer edges, but rectangles are an exception.

8 In the lower left corner of the Property inspector, enter 480 in the width box and 15 in the height box, then press Enter. The rectangle is resized to fit the specified dimensions.

9 Choose the Pointer tool in the Select section of the Tools panel.

10 Drag the rectangle so that it is positioned at the bottom of the canvas, as shown below. Use the arrow keys for exact placement.

11 Choose the Rectangle tool again, and draw a second rectangle. Draw it anywhere on the canvas, and make it any size you want. You’ll change its properties and position in the next section.

Set object properties

Here, you’ll edit the second rectangle you created by changing its size, position, and color in the Property inspector.

1 With the rectangle still selected, click the Stroke Color box in the Property inspector and enter CCCCCC as the color value. Press Enter to apply the change.

2 Set the Tip Size to 1 by dragging the pop-up slider or typing in the text box.

3 Click the Fill Color box in the Property inspector and click the Transparent button.

4 In the Property inspector, enter the following values in the width, height, and coordinate boxes. Then click outside the Property inspector to apply your changes.

■ Width: 480

■ Height: 215

■ X: 0

■ Y: 0

The rectangle becomes a gray border around the edge of the canvas. 

If your system uses gray as the color for the window background, it may be difficult for you to see the rectangle at this point. But don’t worry, it’s still there.

5 Choose the Pointer tool and click outside the rectangle to deselect it.

Note: You can deselect an object by clicking anywhere outside the object. In this instance, the rectangle fills the entire workspace, so click in the gray area that surrounds the canvas.

The properties change in the Property inspector. Because no objects are selected, you now see document properties instead of object properties.